Entrepreneur Assignment

INTRODUCTION

Value creation the word behind the success of every company. In every transaction, we make, in every employee we appoint, in any product we buy, in every job we wish to undertake we look for the word value preferably substantial. Even the most valuable things like golden cannot be sold if the buyer does not see the value in the design. In one word, the world of business will not move forward without perceiving the value in what they want to offer or sale, the customers do not buy the products or seek the services without perceiving the value they expect.

According to Michal Porter, strategy is about being different. Over the long run, only companies that succeed in building a sustained competitive advantage will be successful (Porter, 1996). Therefore, a company’s value creation of a product or services needs to be distinct from its competitors. It needs to be both more effective and more efficient. Product innovation no longer offers sufficient competitive advantage in differentiating successful companies (McGrath, 2011). Competitors are quickly able to copy innovations, product life cycles are becoming shorter and competitors from low wage countries have considerable cost and price advantages.

This paper examines value creation as key component of success of most entrepreneurs. Using five local small business as example, we demonstrate how successful they have been in value creation for their product. Based on these companies, we also discuss possible impediments to value creation of products that they have been facing. Lastly the innovation in entrepreneurship.

VALUE CREATION

Firms create value through their superior ability to organize and coordinate activities; they are able to produce products and services that are valued by society. Firms also create values through their focus on the production of products and services and through their marketing and competitive activities, firms promote capitalist and other values within and outside their boundaries (Graeber, 2005).

According to Barney (1991) ‘‘resources are valuable when they enable a firm to conceive of or implement strategies that improve its efficiency or effectiveness or when they exploit opportunities and or neutralize threats in a firm‘s environment’’

Behind these definitions ideas value implies a meaning in a larger system, these can be systems of any kind – a customer who values a product, a firm that values a resource or society which values productive labour.

In short, value can be regarded as a trade-off between benefits and sacrifices. Some actors define value in business markets monetarily, whereas others use a broader value definition, which also includes non-monetary revenues, such as competence, market position, and social rewards. In the context of this study, we understand value creation as component to most of our local small companies to be successful.

The value creation process consists of three key elements: determining what value the company can provide to its customers; determining the value the organisation receives from its customers; and, by successfully managing this value exchange, maximising the lifetime value of desirable customer segments (Jones and Wicks, 1999)

RESEARCH AND RESULTS

In order to understand how small companies have been successful in value creation of their product, we identified  five local small business in Windhoek based on the assumption that small companies have put more effort in value creation of their products or services to meet their target customers and achieve the success in the market. The main selection criteria were firm’s development impact in the local communities and their potentials sustainability

 We conducted face-to face interviews with the business owners and to understand more about the topic we collected some information in the books.

BACKGROUNDS OF THE COMPANIES

To understand better about the topic we contacted some companies that helped us understand how they have been successful in value creation of their product. We contacted five companies that are:

1. Simple Belle Beauty House Ltd
2. Spring Tours & Safaris Ltd
3. Hesh Trading Enterprises CC
4. La Marmite Royal Restaurant Ltd
5. King Salomon Ltd

Simple Belle Beauty House

Simple Belle Beauty House is a company that exists since 2011. Before starting the manager of Belle Beauty House worked as an entrepreneur (solo ground) mostly reproducing the artist models for music, videos clips, etc.

She travelled to South Africa to acquire more skills, when she returned to Namibia in 2011 she open her own business, which today is well known by many people, especially by women.

Belle Beauty House offer the followings services products: hairdressing, manicure and make up (facial beauty). Their product are imported in Brazil, United Kingdom and South Africa. For future objective BBH is planning launching their own product.

Spring Tours & Safaris (STS)

STS is a Namibian company stablished on the 25 September 2015. STS is located in Windhoek and its core business is tourism, and transport in different areas. In tourism, they provide to their customers suitable packages to be in contact with nature of wildlife that Namibia offers in different location, townships, etc. They also provide transport many destination of Namibia such as boarder-to-boarder, shuttle services in Windhoek, and transfers to the international Airport.

Hesh trading Enterprises CC

Hesh Trading Enterprises CC is a registered close corporation under the law of the Republic of Namibia. The company has been recently registered, although it has been operating as home based for the last years. HTE CC specialized more in tailoring and boutique activities industries where it offers, it also provides services according to client specification. The company render quality services in this area and equipped with few equipment for their tailoring and boutique department that operating throughout Windhoek and some others region of the country.

La Marmite Royal Restaurant Ltd

La Marmite Royal Restaurant Ltd is a business, which does and serves foods and drinks to customers in exchange for money. Meals are generally served in the premises, but there are also takeout foods. Their primary objective is to offer delicious foods and drinks to their customers and keeping growing in the market that they are operating.

King Salomon Ltd

King Salomon Ltd started as an idea whereby the basic service was initially given as a hobby, in the course of time, they come to the realization about their potential and how good they were at what they are doing therefore, they decided to explore more the market they were in and establish a more serious business in which both the business and society would benefit through their services.  The business was founded by Mr Sami Samuel and Miss Ina Samuel, and offer services like graphic designs, photographing, videography and printing.